About Me

Hello! My name is Julian Haddad and I am a Ph.D. candidate in Political Science at UC Davis. I am a passionate instructor with nine years of experience teaching political science to both undergraduate and graduate students. To date, I have served as instructor of record at American River College, UC San Diego, UC Davis, and Sacramento State University. As a Teaching Assistant Consultant at UC Davis, I have led a number of teaching workshops and created teaching resources for other instructors. I conduct both pedagogical and traditional political science research. The former helps us better understand how AI-related job threats are shaping workers’ attitudes toward the welfare state around the world. The latter provides instructors strategies for teaching political philosophy from a global perspective.

Education

  • Ph.D. in Political Science, UC Davis | 2026
    First Field: Comparative Politics, Second Field: Political Theory
  • Master of International Affairs, UC San Diego | 2018
    Career Tracks: International Economics and Business | Regional Focus Latin America
  • B.A., UC San Diego | 2016
    History and International Studies: Political Science Focus, Music Minor

Research Interests

Political economy of AI | Political Science Pedagogy | Welfare State Policy | Survey experiments | Latin America | Comparative Political Philosophy of Redistribution

Bio

For as long as I can remember, I have been interested in understanding why some countries’ economies were so dysfunctional that their citizens risked life and limb to emigrate. Growing up in Stockton, in a Lebanese immigrant family in a neighborhood of immigrants from Mexico and their children, this question was particularly salient. After studying political science at UC San Diego, I realized much of these differences in economic prospects can be traced to economic policy. My research aims to help us better understand why some economic shocks provoke political upheavals but others do not. Specifically, it shows how welfare state generosity shapes voters’ responses to automation threats (especially AI) across countries. Latin America, with its varied welfare regimes and history of populist political movements, is a central focus. My teaching on political economy highlights how different cultures’ longstanding intellectual traditions influence modern debates over the role of the state in the economy.

Teaching is an extremely important part of my academic work. When I had my first opportunity to teach in 2016, I realized how passionate I am about helping students understand the way politics shape our world. At the time, I was leading discussion sections at UC San Diego while completing my Master of International Affairs (MIA). I enjoyed what I did so much that I stayed on as a full-time Teaching Assistant and Lecturer at UC San Diego upon obtaining my MIA in 2018. Then, each summer from 2019–2023, I had the wonderful experience of teaching Analytical Writing to the incoming class of master’s students at UCSD’s School of Global Policy and Strategy, with an emphasis on writing for policy analysts. Since beginning my Ph.D. at UC Davis in 2021, I have also served as an instructor of record at UC Davis, American River College, Sacramento State University, and UC San Diego.

I now have nearly ten years of experience in teaching, mentorship, and pedagogical development. I’ve served as an instructor of record for courses in comparative politics, American politics, and international relations and have taught hundreds of discussion sections in comparative politics and political theory ranging from Mesoamerican Political Thought to key perspectives on political economy (Keynes, Friedman, etc.). My teaching emphasizes inclusive pedagogy, high academic standards, and active learning. At UC Davis, I also served as a Teaching Assistant Consultant, providing one-on-one consultations and leading workshops on Universal Design for Learning, supporting multilingual learners, and integrating technology into the classroom.

I teach every course through a global lens. When teaching courses in American politics, students learn about the ways the US political system differs from its counterparts around the world. In political theory classes, in addition to learning about the Western canon of political thinkers, students read texts like the Analects of Confucius and pre-colonial Mesoamerican sources in order to broaden their understanding of political science.

Outside of my work I love to play the guitar, read fiction, bake sourdough, and spend time with friends and family.